White House Will Address ‘Deport Justin Bieber’ Petition

As I scrolled down my news feed on Facebook last week, I expected to hear people buzzing about Obama’s State of the Union speech that was given last Tuesday.
However, I came to realize that there were more pressing matters at hand going on in our country, namely a petition for Justin Bieber’s deportation. I always thought the mere presence of the Biebs could in fact be lethal. When he toured major cities, I anticipated headlines to read, “Hair Pulling Brawl for Bieber’s Autograph Leaves One Teen Slain.” The hashtag #OneLessLonelyGirl would shortly start trending following this incident. I also have to admit that if Bieber was ever in a 100-foot radius of me, my body would erupt in turbulent convulsions. However, after a few wrong turns this year, this Canadian smoke show is now facing some serious backlash. These wrong turns have included various forms of vandalism, drug possession, assault and a DUI.
A petition was formed last Thursday to deport Justin after he was arrested in Miami for driving under the influence, resisting arrest and drag racing. Bieber was easily able to post bail that was set at $2,500. Earlier in January, the superstar was caught egging his neighbor’s house, which the neighbor said will cost them $20,000 according to a report published by CNN. In less than a week, the petition exceeded 100,000 signatures, which is mandatory in order for the White House to review it and respond. While I’m disappointed in Bieber’s recent behavior, I’m more disappointed how people would go out of their way to sign such a petition, yet ignore some extremely major social issues. With all of the problems our country is dealing with today, it’s upsetting to see how our obsession with celebrities has amounted to us wasting our government’s time with such a ridiculous petition.

I believe that the petition system our government has is a good idea because it gives a platform for citizens to voice their concerns for issues they believe in. I’ve signed a number of petitions through the website Change.org, which organizes petitions that relate to things such as human rights, criminal justice and human trafficking. Before you sign the petition, you read a summary which may include some video to inform you on the issue at hand. Most recently, I signed a petition for a father who walked away free after neglecting his mentally retarded son who ended up dying of starvation. When I think of a tragic story like that, which may not reach 100,000 signatures, and then I see Justin Bieber’s petition reach over 100,000 signatures in a couple of days, it makes me absolutely sick. Yes, a DUI is a terrible crime that can result in the loss of innocent lives, but the only reason that petition reached so many signatures is because of the celebrity status of that particular individual.
To get a better understanding of where our priorities lie, I looked through the open petitions that are up to be signed on the White House’s “We The People” website. As of Feb. 2, 239,421 people have signed the Justin Bieber deportation petition. Two weeks ago, a petition was formed to protect net neutrality which has only received 4,507 signatures. In three days, a petition to increase research funding for Angelman Syndrome, a rare neuro-genetic disorder which is characterized by mental retardation and frequent seizures, reached 268 signatures. Overall, the Bieber petition topped issues ranging from the violence in Ukraine to affordable public education.
In 2012, the amount of signatures needed in a petition for the White House to respond was 25,000. Since then, it has been upped to 100,000. I don’t think increasing the amount of signatures needed will do much help except hinder less glamorous, but important issues being raised. The fault lies in the values of our citizens. We have been given an opportunity to raise awareness on issues that are being ignored, but have made a mockery of this democratic system to the extent of petitioning for the deportation of Piers Morgan and the construction of a Death Star spacecraft.
While I’m upset at Bieber’s new bad boy ‘tude and awful attempt at growing a mustache, I still don’t think his crimes should reach the White House level. With all the money he has, he could have easily called a cab to drive him home, or better yet, reach out to a Tampa fan girl who would have gladly made the trek to Miami to secure the safety of Biebs and the people of Miami. While it’s unfair that many celebrities get off the hook with crimes or are given special treatment in prison, this is mainly a societal issue brought on by our country’s obsession for celebrities and is not something that can just go away by deporting Justin Bieber.
Vanessa Righeimer can be reached at vanessa.righeimer@spartans.ut.edu